Perhaps the most remarkable dramatic establishment Chicago ever had, was launched in the early eighties. It was known as “Grand Duke’s Theatre,” or, it was better known to its patrons as “The Grand Dooks Theatre.” It began its career in a vacant store building on South State street in a very humble way; but with increasing prosperity removed to more suitable quarters. The prices of admission were as follows: Boxes, 25 cents; orchestra, 15 cents; balcony, 10 cents; gallery, 5 cents. The establishment was managed and controlled by boys and its audiences were composed of boys and young men. The company was composed of youths yet in their teens, and the performances were of the “blood-and-thunder” order, interspersed with “variety acts” of a startling description. The house and appointments were primitive, and the stage equally so. The orchestra was made up of amateur musicians, and was placed out of sight at the back of the stage. The footlights consisted of six kerosene lamps with glass shades. Two red-plush lounges, stuffed with saw-dust, and in a sad state of dilapidation served as boxes; while the orchestra stalls were represented by half a dozen two-legged benches, and the balcony and gallery were composed of a bewildering arrangement of step ladders and dry-goods boxes. The manager acted as his own policeman, and enforced order by knocking the heads of disorderly spectators or by summarily ejecting them. The performances were crude, but they satisfied the audiences, and never failed to draw forth a storm of applause, mingled with shrill whistles and stamping of feet. The boys were satisfied. What more could be desired? ┌───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │ Transcriber's Note: │ │ │ │ The original spelling, hyphenation, and punctuation have been │ │ retained, with the exception of apparent typographical errors │ │ which have been corrected. │ │ │ │ Punctuation and spelling were made consistent when a predominant │ │ form was found in this book; otherwise they were not changed. │ │ │ │ Italicized words are surrounded by underline characters, _like │ │ this_. │ └───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Chicago and its cess-pools of infamy, by Samuel Paynter Wilson